Norway Chess: Praggnanandhaa Falls to Alireza Firouzja, Magnus Carlsen Takes Sole Lead

Indian siblings R Praggnanandhaa and R Vaishali faced defeats in their respective sections, while Magnus Carlsen reaffirmed his top position with a victory over an out-of-form Ding Liren, propelling him to the sole lead with 12 points in the Norway Chess tournament.

Fabiano Caruana’s win over compatriot Hikaru Nakamura further cemented Carlsen’s position as the front-runner in the six-player double round-robin contest, which features a total prize pool of USD 161,000.

Praggnanandhaa lost to France’s Firouzja Alireza in the Armageddon tiebreaker after a challenging Classical game. Meanwhile, Vaishali was defeated by world women’s champion Ju Wenjun of China, who outmaneuvered her in the endgame.

With four rounds remaining in both sections, Carlsen leads with 12 points, followed by Nakamura with 11 points. Praggnanandhaa is in third place with 9.5 points. Alireza stands fourth with 8 points, followed by Caruana with 6.5 points. China’s Ding Liren, struggling in the tournament, has only 2.5 points and needs a remarkable turnaround to remain competitive.

In the women’s section, Ju Wenjun and Ukraine’s Anna Muzychuk took the lead from Vaishali, both securing 10.5 points. Muzychuk won a hard-fought Armageddon against China’s Lei Tingjie. Vaishali is now in third place with 10 points. Lei follows in fourth with 7 points, ahead of Koneru Humpy, who lost to Sweden’s Pia Cramling in the Armageddon. Cramling, with 4.5 points, remains at the bottom of the standings.

Carlsen capitalized on a small opening advantage against Ding Liren, using his double bishops to launch a kingside offensive. A critical blunder by Ding allowed Carlsen to conclude the game with a dramatic queen sacrifice. Ding, who recently won the world championship against Ian Nepomniachtchi, has struggled and must regroup for his next match against India’s D Gukesh.

According to FIDE, there are bids from Delhi, Chennai, and Singapore to host the next World Championship match.

Praggnanandhaa’s hopes were dented as Alireza applied pressure in the Classical game, leading to a draw. In the Armageddon tiebreaker, Praggnanandhaa faltered and could not recover.

In the women’s section, Vaishali had opportunities but Ju Wenjun’s technical prowess prevailed. The minor pieces endgame presented chances for Vaishali, but she could not withstand the pressure.

Results

Men:

• Magnus Carlsen (Nor, 12) defeated Ding Liren (Chn, 2.5) 3-0
• Hikaru Nakamura (USA, 11) lost to Fabiano Caruana (USA, 6.5) 1-1.5
• Firouzja Alireza (Fra, 8) defeated R Praggnanandhaa (Ind, 9.5) 1.5-1

Women:

• R Vaishali (Ind, 10) lost to Ju Wenjun (Chn, 10.5) 0-3
• K Humpy (Ind, 5) lost to Pia Cramling (Swe, 4.5) 1-1.5
• Anna Muzychuk (Ukr, 10.5) defeated Lei Tingjie (Chn, 7) 1.5-1